Sludge Watch ==> House Committee Passes Sewage Right-to-Know Bill

[Maureen Reilly]

Sludgewatch Admin:

How about a matching sewage sludge 'Right-to-Know' Bill - that requires food 
labelling of foods grown on sludge, and  disclosure of the location of 
properties that have been spread with sludges?

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Committee Passes Sewage Right-to-Know Bill

The House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee approved the Raw 
Sewage Community Right-to-Know Act (H.R. 2452) May 15, bringing the American 
public one step closer to knowing when it is safe to swim in local waters. 
The bill amends the Clean Water Act to provide stricter standards for public 
notification of sewage overflows.

Over 850 billion gallons of raw sewage are released into local waterways 
each year. H.R. 2452 requires publicly owned water treatment facilities to 
provide timely notice of any overflow to local authorities, public health 
officials, and the public at large. More detailed weekly and monthly reports 
would also be mandatory. Should the full Congress pass the legislation, it 
would create the first national public notification requirement for this 
type of pollution.

Introduced a year ago by Reps. Tim Bishop (D-NY) and Frank LoBiondo (R-NJ), 
the Sewage Right-to-Know Act has recently picked up speed in Congress. 
Following the committee vote, it now awaits consideration by the full House. 
With bipartisan support, the bill is expected to be scheduled for a vote 
before the August recess.

American Rivers, a prominent supporter of the bill, has been joined by over 
150 other organizations to promote the legislation's passage. "Clean water 
isn't and shouldn't be a political issue," said American Rivers president 
Rebecca Wodder. She added, "Passing this law isn't about assigning blame, 
but rather shining a light on a rather odious problem to build support for 
solutions."

The main culprit in the massive sewage overflows is the aging — and in many 
cases, broken — water quality infrastructure in the country. As USA Today 
reported on May 7, billions of dollars will be spent over the next 20 years 
to repair and upgrade what the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 
estimates to be 1.2 million miles of aging sewer lines.

A Gannett News analysis found that at least one-third of the sewage 
treatment systems the bill is aimed at were in violation of the Clean Water 
Act and other laws over the past five years. Gannett has developed a site to 
search for these sewage discharge violations on a state-by-state basis.

The Senate companion bill, S. 2080, was introduced by Sen. Frank 
Lautenberg☼ (D-NJ) on Sept. 20, 2007, and has been referred to the 
Committee on Environment and Public Works. The National Association of Clean 
Water Agencies, which represents publicly owned wastewater utilities, is in 
full support of the bill.

http://www.ombwatch.org/article/articleview/4264/1/1?TopicID=1